‘Chansler’s Blog’ Posts

Marlies have defeated the IceCaps in three of four meetings this season
Spencer Abbott has collected a point in each of the past two games and leads all Marlies rookies with 22 points this season
The Marlies have only four wins over the past 15 games and presently hold 8th place in the Western Conference
The IceCaps have had only a pair of wins over the past eight games and rank 14th in the Eastern Conference
The Toronto powerplay […]

Hear are six things to keep in mind ahead of tonight’s game in Syracuse:

2012 Calder Cup champions Norfolk Admirals relocated to Syracuse during the offseason; this is their first meeting with the Marlies
Crunch netminder Riku Helenius was just named the CCM/AHL Player of the Week having recorded three wins with two shutouts along the way
Syracuse has most recently won four straight and sit first in the Eastern Conference
Marlies netminder Drew MacIntyre has allowed only two regulation goals in his two starts for the Marlies
Jake Gardiner leads his team […]

With the returning of the National Hockey League to regular play, my favourite aspect of the AHL is starting to shine through once again. The development of first-year players.

That’s not to say it was non-existent during the first part of the season – the blooming of Spencer Abbott is a tremendous example of such – but with the holes that were left by players moving up top to the Leafs, the prominence of roles and minutes played by rookies has increased. With all eyes […]

And for the very last time this season I get to say… tonight the Toronto Marlies take on their AHL rival, Hamilton.

Wow, does twelve games ever go by fast. Fourteen if you include preseason.

Barring a miraculous rise to a playoff position by the Bulldogs, Tuesday will be the final meeting between the two teams until the 2013/14 season commences in October. The season may not have had the flash of the outdoor game, but it certainly was filled with its fair share of drama.

As of Sunday, Toronto will play their fourth consecutive game at Ricoh Coliseum as they host the Texas Stars. And although their next game is away from home, you can’t exactly say they ‘hit the road.’ After four straight at home, the Marlies head to Hamilton for a game on the 12th, followed by two more at home. The Toronto club will then venture to Syracuse only to return to Ricoh for 10 straight. In total, that’s 16 of […]

The Marlies continue their four game home stand on Saturday as they host the Chicago Wolves at Ricoh Coliseum as the AHL standings race continues.

It’s the first time the two clubs have met during the course of the 2012/13 campaign, but the significance at this point in time could not be higher. Sitting seventh and eighth in the conference standings, both clubs are focused on avoiding a bump out of the playoff bubble.

The Marlies have trended downwards since the reinstatement of NHL play, having promoted a combination of […]

It feels like one of those one-liners, except this one starts with “You know the season’s coming to a close when…”

The Marlies prepare to face the Bulldogs for the final time at home this season and any way you look at it, it indicates that this 2012/13 season is slowly coming to a close. Four of the North Division’s five teams are in playoff contention, the Bulldogs being the lone club out.

After a slide that saw the Marlies win only one of six, Saturday’s victory over Hamtilon – […]

At what point of the season does it become acceptable to start scoreboard watching? Is there an actual threshold we cross in which it’s alright to start calculating the number of games left and minimal amount of wins needed to make it into the post season?

The Marlies, who lead the Western Conference on New Year’s Eve, now find themselves ten points back of first and relegated to sixth in the West and on the unfavourable end of a three game losing streak. If the season ended today, Toronto […]

Just days after the previous game day blog discussing Marlies on the move up to the NHL and how quickly things can change, the roster has yet again been shaken up.

Although the circumstances are all completely unrelated, it almost seems like the Marlies cashed in on a two-for-one deal. Matt Frattin was recalled by the NHL Maple Leafs to replace the injured Joffrey Lupul, while Toronto’s AHL blue line has been bolstered with the returning of both Korbinian Holzer and Jake Gardiner. Frattin made haste with impression making […]

Leafs PR announced on Wednesday night Korbinian Holzer has been assigned to the Toronto Marlies following the activation of Jake Gardiner onto the active roster. Holzer is in his third season with the Toronto Marlies and has suited up for three games with the Maple Leafs, registering two penalty minutes.

For the Marlies, Holzer’s return is welcome as the team lost four blue liners when NHL training camp opened and have most recently been without Paul Ranger who is sidelined with an upper body injury.

When the Marlies departed Ricoh and took to the road, the opening of NHL training camp was yet to be confirmed. Keith Aucoin had yet to be called to camp, let alone collected off waivers by the New York Islanders organization. Ben Scrivens was starting in goal on a regular basis for the Toronto team, and the blue line was bolstered by Mike Kostka and Mark Fraser.

For Dallas Eakins, the Marlies’ bench boss now in his fourth year, change has become […]

I’m running out of comical ways of describing how many times the Marlies and Bulldogs have squared off. Saturday night will mark game nine of their twelve game season series. I think it’s time to start the count down. Including Saturday, four more games.

After falling to Binghamton on Friday, Toronto traveled through the night and spent the remaining hours usually allotted to sleep in Ontario’s steel town. Due to their late arrival the club has opted not to have a morning skate.

Marlies are in Binghamton Friday to face the Senators with a lineup which has changed even more since the shifting of bodies that happened with the opening of Maple Leafs training camp. The Marlies currently sit third in the Eastern Conference while the Senators are ranked fourth in the west. Friday marks the second meeting between the two clubs this season, both being in Binghamton, with the remaining two to be hosted at Ricoh in early March.

The Marlies will be without Keith Aucoin who was acquired by the New York […]

With the NHL on its way back, bringing with it the regular talk of league parity, it’s incredible to see how the increased levels of competition have trickled down to the AHL levels.

Sure, it makes the season more fun… but it also must take its toll on the heart of a head coach.

The Marlies have been one of the league’s hottest teams since before Christmas. Their 7-1-1-1 record over the past ten is the second best in the league. Yet still the dogfight continues for the conference’s top […]

Is it just me, or did these next few games get a whole lot more important?

The Marlies have been on a monumental run, the club has collected at least a point in ten straight games and a win in eight of those. With the Toronto club on the heels of three straight sellout crowds, they now head to the road for a half dozen contests as the Ricoh ice surface becomes submerged and the boat show floats in. With eyes on so many of the talents that comprise […]

I’ve rolled this around time and time again. Not because I have any specific affinity for the fowl, but rather because like any other formula it can be applied over and over to like situations. What drives a player out of a slump, a timely goal which changes his mindset; or a change in mindset leading to a timely goal?

What has created the Marlies movement in Toronto? Has increased attendance lead to improved […]

Even if we don’t write them down or announce them in front of a group, I’m sure we all make them. Perhaps it’s buying a house, getting a promotion, hitting the gym or something as simple as trying one thing new. I think we all make them.

If I were to draw up the Marlies resolution for the new year it would look something like this:

Don’t Change a Thing!

The Toronto club sits atop of the Western Conference, tied with Charlotte but holding three […]

I picture a director with his black and white striped clapper in hand. Written on it are the words ‘Toronto vs Hamilton’ and the man in charge yells “take seven” before bringing forth a sound from the instrument worthy of its name.

It is one week to the day since these two clubs last met, a game far more one-sided than the 3-2 score let on. Toronto scored three consecutive goals before allowing one against. A fluke shot with a second left then banked in past Scrivens […]

The AHL announced officially on Sunday that Marlies head coach Dallas Eakins will represent the team as head coach of Team West at the upcoming All-Star Game in Providence, Rhode Island.

It’s been quite the year for the Marlies bench boss who lead his team to a division championship, was the first Maple Leafs affiliate coach to bring the team to an appearance in the finals in 20 years, and became both the Marlies all-time leader in wins as a coach as well as securing the title among all […]